Chennai, 12th March 2019: Kurkure, India’s loved snack brand, today, has announced the launch of Kurkure Ma sala Munch with one of south India’s favorite cooking ingredients, Gingelly Oil, widely known as sesame oil. To launch Kurkure Masala Munch (with Gingelly Oil) the brand has roped in youth icon and leading Tollywood act ress, Samantha Akkineni, who will be seen taking ahead Kurkure’s new positioning, ‘Khayaal Toh Chatpata Hai’ that celebrates the new-age thinking that young Indian homemakers bring to traditional Indian families. As part of the association, Samantha Akkineni will be seen in a new advertising campaign, which has been timed around International Women’s Day.

Kurkure Masala Munch (with Gingelly Oil) is a step towards br and’s continued commitment to offer ‘familiar, local flavors’ in its product portfolio. Available as part of Kurkure’s portfolio in the south, the new Kurkure Ma sala Munch with Gingelly Oil has been inspired by the culinary traditions of southern India, striking a pe rfect balance of Kurkure’s spice, and the familiar taste and aroma of Gingelly Oil.

On Kurkure’s expansion in the South and on-boarding Samantha Akkineni for the launch, Mr Dilen Gandhi – Dir ector Marketing, Foods Category, PepsiCo India, said “Kurkure has always been at the forefront of innovating with new formats and variants; and our regionalization strategy is a demonstration of our efforts to build closer connect with our consumers. Southern India is an important market for us and with the launch of Kurkure Ma sala Munch with Gingelly Oil, we aim to bring in a twist of south Indian taste and flavor to the much-loved tea-ime snack.”

“With a promise to add more exc itement and flavor with the new brand mantra, we are delighted to have Sa mantha take forward the positioning of ‘Khayaal Toh Chat pa ta Hai’. As a youth icon, Samantha is a true reflect ion of local tradit ions and culture along with modern, pro gressive thinking; making her the perfect choice to celebrate Kur ku re’s new brand journey in South In dia” he further added.Sharing her excitement on joining Kur kure on this new journey, Samantha Akkineni said, “Kurkure has always been a fun and euphoric brand and I’m excited to be a part of the new journey that the brand has embarked on, with ‘Ka arasaaramana Sindanai Daan’. The essence of the new positioning centers around celebrating new-age ide olo gies amongst Indian homemakers, and aptly voices the sentiment of every Indian woman. I strongly believe that there is no better time than now to honor the women who have always endeavored to bring about positive tra nsformation at home and beyond.”

In the film, Samantha, representing an Indian homemaker, is seen celebrating her success as an MBA graduate, only to be reminded of her duties as a homemaker by her mother-in-law, who advises her to focus on her family life. Feeling dejected at the loss of pro fessional hopes and dreams, Samantha looks for answers – and, as her ga ze falls upon the Kurkure pack, she feels resolved and confident to bring in a transformation in her mo ther-in-law’s thinking. She offers the all new Kurkure Masala Munch with Gingelly oil to her mother-in-law, who is me smerized by the aroma and taste, and deeply encouraged to break free from conventional ideologies. The film ends with both, Samantha and her mother-in-law successfully running a badminton academy – celebrating the power of progressive thinking amongst Indian women.The new variant of Kurkure will be available at 3 price points INR 5, INR 10 and INR 20 and will be marketed in southern states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Telangana, An dhra Pradesh and Karnataka.

About Kurkure:

Kurkure- a product that was developed in India, has established a strong connect with consumers across the co untry as a great tasting ‘namkeen’ snack. Kurkure is one of the eight brands in Pe psiCo India’s portfolio, each of which bring in over INR 1000 crore in annual estimated retail sales. The expa ns ion of the Kurkure trademark across different salty snacking formats is a reiteration of PepsiCo’s endeavor of building out strong master bra nds in its India portfolio. Kurkure is also manufactured and sold in countries like the UAE, Canada, Pakistan and Bangladesh.

About PepsiCo India:

PepsiCo entered India in 1989 and has grown to become one of the largest MNC food and beverage businesses in India. PepsiCo India has been consistently investing in the country and has built an expansive beverage and snack food business supported by 62 plants across the country. PepsiCo India’s diverse portfolio includes iconic brands like Pepsi, Lay’s, Kurkure, Tropicana 100%, Gatorade and Quaker.PepsiCo’s growth in India has been gu ided by “Performance with Purpose”, its goal to deliver top-tier financial performance while creating sus ta inable growth and shareholder value. In practice, Performance with Purpose means providing a wide range of fo ods and beverages from treats to healthy eats; finding innovative ways to minimize our impact on the envi ron ment and reduce our operating costs; providing a safe and inclusive workplace for our employees globally; and respecting, supporting and investing in the local communities where we operate. In 2009, PepsiCo India ach iev ed a significant milestone, by becoming the first business to achieve ‘Positive Water Balance’ in the beverage world, a fact verified by Deloitte Touché Tohmatsu India Pvt. Ltd. The company has been Water Positive since then. For more information, please visit www.pepsicoindia.co.in.